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There Are 20,000 Human Skeletons Beneath The Museum Of London

October 19, 2016

Written byCuriosity Staff

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The Museum of London is one of the city's most popular tourist attractions. But there's something only few of the visitors know: beneath their feet are thousands upon thousands of human skeletons. Those skeletons are part of the collection housed in the museum's Centre for Human Bioarchaeology, and they're there to help archaeologists and historians delve into the history of London and of humanity as a whole. At 20,000 specimens strong, the collection includes remains from nearly every point in London's history, from the Neolithic period to the mid-19th century, and this gives scholars unique insight into how humans lived throughout the ages. From examining burial traditions to learning about how industrialization changed human health, the skeletons have provided a wealth of information. Much of the data about these skeletons is publicly available on the Wellcome Osteological Research Database, which provides descriptions and photographs of the centre's human specimens and the places they were found. Learn more about what skeletons can teach us in the videos below.